Babyshambles – Down In Albion (CD Review)

The much anticipated album from Babyshambles, given a mighty boost in the worlds general awareness by Pete Doherty’s drug problems, relationship problems, etc. I was listening about him before I decided to check out his music and I got a shock. The shock was the kind you’d get if Tom Jones started singing reggae, or Ozzy Osborne became a jazz singer. In other words something was just wrong. You see, in my mind rebels are more raucous than this.

All that aside, after a couple of listens I rid myself of expectations and set about listening properly. The sound of, pretty much, all of ‘Down In Albion’ is a roughed up and curiously produced set of sedate indie-folk with the odd number that have some cheesy bad jazz and beat poetry. The only track really approaching raucous, namely ‘Fuck Forever’, just seems to exist so Pete can relish in some swearing. On the whole the album is alright; it doesn’t shine in any particular aspect and in fact the main thing that began to bug me listening to it was Pete’s slurring vocals.

Personally, the high point of the album was the album opener ‘La Belle Et Le Bete’ which is playful and novel with its light percussion and hushed vocals that break out into guitars for the chorus. I am sure ‘Down In Albion’ will fly off the shelves with alarming speed,